Organization | Inducted 2025
The Chicago Pride League (CPL) has long seen the sport of bowling as a platform for building and supporting community. It is the largest LGBTQ+ bowling league in Chicago, open to any who enjoy positively engaging, regardless of skill, in a fun, accepting environment.
CPL is affiliated with the International Gay Bowlers Association (IGBO), and its bowlers are sanctioned through the U.S. Bowling Congress. Its roots are with the Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association (CMSA); bowling became CMSA’s second sponsored sport after the CMSA formed in 1978. CPL became an independent league in early 2000s.
The league is comprised of more than 200 bowlers on 38 teams as of the 2025-26 season, meeting at Waveland Bowl on Western Avenue on Friday nights from September through April. A raffle at each week’s bowling events raises funds for several charities voted on by league members at the season’s start. The league’s commitment to community is exemplified by the funds raised and donated annually to local organizations that are important to the LGBTQ+ and wider community. Over the last 25 years, well over $100,000 has been raised and donated to groups as varied as the Center on Halsted, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, the AIDS Legal Council of Chicago, Brave Space Alliance, animal welfare groups, and and food pantries, among others.
CPL also has been instrumental in showcasing the city and the sport to bowlers from around the country by sponsoring an annual IGBO-affiliated bowling tournament, recently renamed the Chi-Town Classic. In keeping with CPL tradition, funds raised from this event also are donated to worthy local causes.